Vol. 150, No. 17 — August 24, 2016

Registration

SI/2016-49 August 24, 2016

SPECIES AT RISK ACT

Order Acknowledging Receipt of the Assessments Done Pursuant to Subsection 23(1) of the Act

P.C. 2016-745 August 5, 2016

His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, acknowledges receipt, on the making of this Order, of the assessments done pursuant to subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act (see footnote a) by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) with respect to the species set out in the annexed schedule.

SCHEDULE

Endangered Species

Mammals

Seal Lacs des Loups Marins subspecies, Harbour (Phoca vitulina mellonae)

Phoque commun de la sous-espèce des Lacs des Loups Marins

Whale, Beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) St. Lawrence Estuary population

Béluga population de l’estuaire du Saint-Laurent

Reptiles

Sea Turtle, Leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) Atlantic population

Tortue luth population de l’Atlantique

Sea Turtle, Leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) Pacific population

Tortue luth population du Pacifique

Sea Turtle, Loggerhead (Caretta caretta)

Tortue caouanne

Fish

Bluefin Tuna, Atlantic (Thunnus thynnus)

Thon rouge de l’Atlantique

Dace, Redside (Clinostomus elongatus)

Méné long

Threatened Species

Mammals

Whale, Beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) Cumberland Sound population

Béluga population de la baie Cumberland

Fish

Rockfish, Yellowmouth (Sebastes reedi)

Sébaste à bouche jaune

Sucker, Mountain (Catostomus platyrhynchus) Milk River populations

Meunier des montagnes populations de la rivière Milk

Molluscs

Atlantic Mud-piddock (Barnea truncata)

Pholade tronquée

Special Concern

Fish

Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma malma) Western Arctic populations

Dolly Varden populations de l’ouest de l’Arctique

Sculpin, Rocky Mountain (Cottus sp.) Westslope populations

Chabot des montagnes Rocheuses populations du versant ouest

Sucker, Mountain (Catostomus platyrhynchus) Pacific populations

Meunier des montagnes populations du Pacifique

Removing Listed Species

Fish

Trout, Aurora (Salvelinus fontinalis timagamiensis)

Omble Aurora

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

The Order acknowledges receipt by the Governor in Council of the assessments of the status of 15 aquatic species done pursuant to paragraph 15(1)(a) and in accordance with subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act (SARA) by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC).

The 15 aquatic species that are the subject of the Order are species that the Minister of the Environment, in consultation with the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, is considering for the purpose of recommending to the Governor in Council whether to amend the List of Wildlife Species at Risk set out in Schedule 1 to SARA (the List) in accordance with subsections 27(1.1) and (1.2) by adding, reclassifying or removing the species. Fourteen of these species were assessed and classified as being endangered, threatened or of special concern, and one species was determined as being ineligible for assessment. These assessments were made at various COSEWIC meetings held between 2004 and 2014.

For species that are not currently on the List, under subsection 27(1.1) of SARA, the Governor in Council, within nine months after receiving COSEWIC’s assessment of the status of a species, must review the assessment and, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, may accept the assessment and add the species to the List, decide not to add the species to the List, or refer the matter back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration. The Governor in Council must also decide, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, whether to remove one species from the List which was determined not to be eligible for assessment and, with respect to one other species currently on the List, whether also to remove it from the List and replace it by adding two separate designatable units to the List.

Under subsection 27(2) of SARA, before making a recommendation to the Governor in Council, the Minister of the Environment must take into account COSEWIC’s assessment of the status of a species; consult the competent minister or ministers; and, if the species is found in an area in respect of which a wildlife management board is authorized by a land claims agreement to perform functions in respect of a wildlife species, consult the wildlife management board. Of the 15 species subject to this Order, the Minister of the Environment consulted with Wildlife Management Boards on 2 aquatic species: Dolly Varden (Western Arctic populations) and Beluga Whale (Cumberland Sound population).